The Water and Wastewater Equipment Manufacturers Assn. (WWEMA) submitted a letter to the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative supporting Canada’s request to join the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) negotiations.

“We have an opportunity to strengthen the voice of North American manufacturers at the TPP negotiating table by bringing Canada in as an ally and partner,” WWEMA President Dawn Kristof Champney said. WWEMA was responding to a Dec. 7, 2011, Federal Register notice by USTR soliciting public comment on Canada’s request by Jan. 13, 2012.

This multilateral trade agreement will liberalize trade among the economies of the Asia-Pacific region, which represents more than 40% of global trade. Current parties to the negotiations include Australia, Brunei Darussalam, Chile, Malaysia, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, Vietnam and the U.S.

Canada’s inclusion in these negotiations is viewed by WWEMA as critically important given the cross-border investment, specialization of manufacturing and shared distribution networks between the two countries.

“Together, we can work to ensure that restrictive rules of origin requirements are not a component of this ambitious 21st century agreement, that reductions in tariffs and non-tariff barriers are universally enacted, that government procurement is transparent and open to all signatories to the agreement, and that high standards are put in place to protect intellectual property and the environment,” WWEMA wrote. “Failure to act in unison as a North American block could jeopardize our highly integrated supply chains to the detriment of all U.S. industry."